The non-herding-instinct Corgi
Apparently my corgi, River, lacks any type of herding instinct. We've owned her for about a year and a half and not once have we seen her nip at anyone's heels or try to scoot anyone (or anything) in a certain direction. And it's not that she's lazy, she has energy to spare! She's always ready to play, no matter what time it is. And she'll chase after anything that moves, but rather than try to herd it, she'll just pounce on it like a cat. Do some Corgis just lack the desire to herd? Or does she retain this instinct deep down, and I just haven't given her the opportunity to show it yet? If the latter is the case, I'd love to hear what I can do to help her showcase her natural born talents!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Sam Tsang on
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Not every corgi can be a good herding dog, some have the instinct and need training to bring out the best in them. Ivy and Bryson had a video here where they went thru a herding intro class, check it out in the video tab, you may get some idea and find a class in your area :)
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Permalink Reply by Charlie on
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You may be able to call around to see if anyone around Atlanta offers herding classes, or if anyone can refer you to a working ranch owner who wouldn't mind you taking River out to learn to herd. There are tons of classes here, because there are lots of farms and ranches in TX.
I don't own any livestock, so for us it isn't really practical for me to get Charlie into herding. I am planning to get him into Agility or Flyball when he's old enough, just to give him "a job" and have something fun for both of us. ...and I can build a mini-Agility course or full Flyball run in the backyard for practice between classes.
Unless you have livestock and need to train him to be a true working herding dog, I would just consider a sport you both like to eat up the extra Corgi energy and keep him mentally stimulated. : - )
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Permalink Reply by Sam on
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Many confuse true herding instincts with typical puppy chase and prey drive. Chasing and nipping is really not herding instinct at all though both can occur during herding. Many dogs of different breeds chase and nip. The only real way to see if your corgi possesses the natural instinct is to expose them to the situation. Do remember many dogs will chase stock but one that is willing to do so without harming them and will follow commands is one that could be a good herder.
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Permalink Reply by Becky S on
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We don't know if Brody has a herding for cattle / sheep or not, we do know he loves to herd the cat - get her into the back room, on a chair, wherever he feels she should be. Years ago we had a border collie mix, we were living in New Mexico at the time and would go hiking. Since the ranchers there do a lot of "free range" for the cattle - since there isn't much grass, we came upon a herd of about 10 long horn steer where we were going to start hiking. Max (the border collie) was about 3 months old, jumped out of the back of the truck, raced over to the cattle and started running in a circle around them, barking. Fortunately they just kind of looked at him like "what in the world are you" and he came back by us when we called him. But he was giving it a good try!
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